1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to a radar apparatus and a method of operating the radar apparatus and, more particularly, to a radar apparatus and a method of operating the radar apparatus that are capable of improving the accuracy of detection of a target using an image change detector.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a detection method using a radar, when a target is detected, the sizes of noise called “clutter” and reflected waves are important factors. That is, when a target is detected, there are cases where if the size of the clutter is larger than the size of a signal reflected from the target, it is difficult to detect a target because the signal from the target is mixed with clutter. For example, when a specific automobile on a road is set as a target, it is not easy to only detect a signal reflected from the specific automobile among various objects, for example, buildings and other automobiles.
Furthermore, in the case of an automobile radar, a road environment considerably varies over time. For example, there is a case where an automobile that has just entered a road in which buildings are densely located and there are a small number of traffic lanes. The road in which buildings are densely located and there are a small number of traffic lanes may exhibit significantly different clutter characteristics compared to an expressway in which buildings are sparsely located and there are a large number of traffic lanes. In this situation, the characteristics of the clutter component collection information of the radar should be completely changed.
Accordingly, if it is possible to determine the period for which clutter characteristics have been kept similar and to evaluate clutter values for a long period, the accuracy of detection of a target can be increased.
In connection with this, there is Korean Patent No. 1035304 entitled “Vehicle Radar Apparatus using Elevation Angle Direction Detection Array Antenna and Detection Method using Vehicle Radar Apparatus.”